Peter Hurley: Illuminating The Face

An Obvious Progression From Peter Hurley's First Tutorial
In 2011 Fstoppers teamed up with Peter Hurley to produce the 4 hour video tutorial: The Art Behind The Headshot. Many people have claimed that The Art Behind The Headshot is the single best resource when it comes to coaching your subject and making any person in front of your camera look their best.

4.5 Hours Of Technical Lighting
3 years later Lee Morris and Patrick Hall from Fstoppers traveled back to NYC once again to create a completely unique 4.5 hour video tutorial named: Illuminating The Face. Peter's first tutorial only touched on the technical aspects of lighting but Illuminating The Face completely focuses on every detail that goes into lighting the human face.

Filmed With 4 Cameras and Proportional Modeling Lights
Peter and the Fstoppers team spent 3 days planning and testing, and 6 days filming this detailed video. By using flash heads with proportional modeling lights, Peter is able to spend the first 3 hours shooting without strobe which allows you to clearly see every subtle lighting change he makes. The Fstoppers crew recorded the entire process with 4 cameras running simultaneously so that you will be able to see the shoot from every angle, including a video camera that mimics Peter's still camera. Every time Peter moves a light or changes a power setting, you will be able to see that change on the models face.

Lighting Modifiers Tested On Male And Female Faces
Flattering light differs on men and woman and so it was important to have both a male and female model. By using the same models for the entire 6 day shoot, Peter is able to compare images side by side that were taken days apart. You will be able to study these models faces and by the end of the tutorial you will have a completely new outlook on lighting cast on the human face.

Learn Different Genres Of Lighting
For the first 3 hours Peter goes over the basics of lighting and individual lighting modifiers. You will be able to compare hard light to umbrellas to softboxes to beauty dishes to ring flashes and other light shaping modifiers. Once you have an understanding of the available tools, Peter designs 6 completely different images using all of the modifiers at his disposal. By the end of this tutorial you should have a solid understanding of classic, beauty, fashion, and edgy lighting.

Learn To See Light
This tutorial is not a lesson in camera settings or ratios. Instead of teaching you to mimic light and camera settings, Peter teaches you to see light in a new and detailed way. After watching this tutorial you should be able to view images taken by other photographers and be able to understand exactly how that image was lit simply by looking at the shadow angle, depth, sharpness, falloff, and catch lights. Instead of teaching you to recreate Peter's shots, Peter will teach you how to sculpt the light and notice subtleties so that you can create your own unique images and personal style.

Ouch! I paid full price for the Art Behind The Headshot(and the Wedding DVD and the Architecture one). If I had only waited, I could have gotten the ABTH and the update to it(Lighting) for $400. Too bad this one isn't available to people who boat ABTH for $100 more...

I finished watching Peter's new video last night, "Illuminating the Face" and I have to say, the guy knows his stuff. We've all known that. But now we see the technical side of Peter. We've all seen him in action as that crazy-haired ball of energy and how he can pull expression from his subjects through coaching. This is the other side of Peter Hurley. A very methodical technician of light who chases after the little nuances in an image (what I've always considered the most difficult to master, the last 10%). This was a day 1 purchase for me and it's been one of the best tutorials I've seen. If you have his first DVD, this one is the perfect companion that covers everything technical about light.

I just finished the first chapter and it was great. I have been shooting weddings for 5 years and still found valuable information. If you are looking to get better at lighting, or just starting to using it, then you should think about buying this DVD.

As a writer for FStoppers I had the privilege of seeing this tutorial before its release. I thought I would watch it chapter by chapter as time permits. Not possible. This was seriously so well put together, entertaining, and informative, that I found myself plastered to the screen watching the entire thing in one shot. I think more than anything I enjoyed the fact that we got to see Peter Hurley troubleshoot lighting problems as they happened. A lot of tutorials will omit that and simply show you the correct way to do things, whereas Peter Hurley takes the time to show you the problem he created, and then how he goes about solving it. I find that to be a rare insight into the mind of a working pro at the top of his game.